One Last Duty
by FrolleinKruemel
Summary: Thirty years after the fifth Blight Alistair, king of Ferelden and his former companion Elanor Tabris, Warden-Commander of Ferelden set out together to fulfill one last duty.


**AN - My first fic on , therefore only a One-Shot. So, yeah... hope you enjoy it ^^**

**I do not own Dragon Age: Origins**

* * *

_A feral sound._

_Roaring._

_Screaming._

_The cry of a tainted creature, ringing loudly within her head._

_Her heart begins to pound faster. Her blood begins to boil within her veins._

_At first it's dark and she can only listen and feel._

_Listen to the roaring battling with the sound of her own heartbeat._

_Feel her blood boil and the urge within her rise._

_The roaring gets louder, drowning out all other sounds._

_The urge grows and she fights to keep control._

_She listens to the voice of the creature, hears it calling._

_Calling for her._

_And then she sees it._

_The shape of a familiar creature, spreading its wings to darken the crimson sky._

_It stretches its neck, roaring into the heavens, spurring on the mass of creatures surrounding it and the roaring gets even louder. She can hear their voices, too._

_Then it lowers his head and looks directly at her. The dragon's eye captures her entire vision before she hears the voice again._

_It calls for her._

_And she can't resist the urge any longer._

_The urge…_

_…to follow the calling._

* * *

When she woke up her companion was still sound asleep. Her heart beat wildly in her chest and she was breathing heavily. Inhaling and exhaling deeply she calmed herself, her pulse turning to normal again. Raking a hand through her usually raven-black hair that had gained a few gray streaks over time the remnants of her dream slowly vanished, leaving only the constant feeling of something tugging at her heart behind. By now she had almost gotten used to the dreams. Almost.

That was the reason they were here.

She looked up at the high stone ceiling. It had been weeks since she had last seen the sky, the stars and the moon or since she had felt the warmth of the sun on her skin. Now there was always stone surrounding them, making it hard to predict if it was day or night on the surface. The last weeks had consisted of traveling the Deep Roads, fighting and hunting down darkspawn. It felt almost like back then. They had fought alongside each other before thirty years ago, setting up camp once they got tired and keeping watch over their sleeping comrades. Maybe it was the age, maybe it was the fact that last time they went into the tunnels was during the Blight, but it seemed like there were more of the tainted creatures now than thirty years prior. The number of the darkspawn didn't really matter though.

They had a duty to fulfill.

One last duty.

When Alistair began to stir she glanced at him. His facial lines were scrunched, making the wrinkles around his eyes and lips even deeper. Some short strands of his reddish hair that had grayed slightly over the years were sticking to his forehead, a thin layer of sweat covering his skin. The dreams woke him up, too. It was the fate of all Grey Wardens. It was the prize they had to pay for their ability to end the Blight.

When he opened his hazel eyes and sat up abruptly she stood up and walked over to him, kneeling beside him, putting a warm and strong hand on his shoulder. Her calm ocean-blue eyes reassured him when he looked at her, slight confusion written over his aged face. Once he had composed himself, they prepared themselves and left their resting place to head deeper into the tunnels, already sensing the darkspawn lurking within the shadows.

* * *

It was their last battle.

The masses of darkspawn were seemingly coming from all sides. The two of them had long passed the point where the Legion of the Dead held the line. They were past the point of no return. But for a Grey Warden there was no turning back anyway. Before they would be corrupted entirely by the taint they would slay as many darkspawn as possible, eventually dying in battle with the soulless creatures.

After hours of battling the bulk of Genlocks, Hurlocks and Shrieks they were closing in on the two Wardens. Both were breathing heavily, their heavy armors and Alistair's shield – the one that once had belonged to Duncan – dirtied with blood. Their swords were also covered in the crimson liquid, thick drops falling from the blades and onto the floor that was overcast with the remnants of the previous battle.

They were worn out yet they refused to give up. As long as there was a little bit life left in them, as long as they could breath, as long as their hearts' beat and they could still hold their weapons they would fight.

It didn't matter that they were outnumbered a hundred to one. It didn't matter that for every foe they slew two other appeared. It didn't matter that they were wounded and tired. It didn't matter that their muscles were aching with every shield bash and every weapon sweep.

They would fall today in any case.

It was their duty.

Their last duty.

"Here it … COMES!" Alistair cried, smiting one of the creatures with his shield, sending it to the floor. Beside him his elven comrade swung her tow-handed sword, twirling around her own center, slicing through half a dozen darkspawn. Alistair brought his sword down on another Genlock. When he heard her shout his name he turned around, blocking the fist of the ogre just in time with his shield. Before the ogre could attack again Alistair saw her rush past him, her sword held in one hand, almost like a spear. She leapt forward and onto the brawny monster, driving her blade deep into its chest. The force of the impact made the ogre tumble down with the Warden on top of his torso, the sword still buried deep within its chest. A strangled gurgling echoed from the stone walls when she pulled her weapon out of the body, before delivering the death blow to the horned creature.

While she was still standing on top of the corpse the rest of the horde was closing in on them. Alistair shielded her from another attack, before they regrouped. They stood back-to-back, their weapons raised, in the middle of a sea of darkspawn.

"I guess… this is it." He said panting, the same old smirk present on his features.

"I'll take a few more with me." She grumbled in response, determination audible in her voice.

They glanced at each other one last time and when her ocean-blue eyes met his hazel ones time seemed to stop. Various emotions flickered over their faces. Unspoken words conveyed through their eyes. Words they had never spoken. Words they had often spoken. Words that didn't need to be said. Everything was clearly visible in the lines on their faces.

_Goodbye, dear friend…_

For the blink of an eye the corners of her dry and bloodstained lips curved upward and her eyes began to sparkle. His own lips mimicked hers and his eyes turned soft.

_Goodbye, my love…_

Simultaneously they began murmuring words.

_In War. Victory._

Her sword cut through the air.

_In Peace. Vigilance._

He raised his shield.

_In Death. Sacrifice._

Their last duty finally fulfilled.

* * *

**So.. what do you think?**


End file.
